


Who says Vampires and Shadowhunters can't put up with each other for a day?

by Multifandom_damnation



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Bad Parenting, Blood Drinking, Brotherly Affection, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Family Loss, Gen, Heart-to-Heart, I'm Bad At Tagging, Jace Wayland is a Herondale, Lack of Communication, Protective Siblings, Religious Conflict, Religious Imagery & Symbolism, Sibling Love, Team as Family, really hard to tag this one
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-03
Updated: 2019-01-03
Packaged: 2019-09-11 23:08:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,554
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16861795
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Multifandom_damnation/pseuds/Multifandom_damnation
Summary: “Do you really think you’re a screw-up?”“Don’t you?”Jace and Simon finally have a heart to heart involving the circumstances of a lonely house, a protective older sister and a park filled with laughter. And maybe, just maybe, they could learn to move past their differences just for one day, and figure out what it feels to be something almost friendly.





	Who says Vampires and Shadowhunters can't put up with each other for a day?

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry, some of this might be from the books but I haven't read them in a long time so I have no idea because I haven't really seen the show yet either. Jace may sound like book Jace for some of it but I think it fits either way. Hope you enjoy it. I've been trying to post this for a while but tagging was just so difficult that I gave up for a couple of months so if you think I need to add anything else, let me know. x

The night was cold and the only illumination was the moon shining down through the trees and the dim old streetlights that glistened down onto the rain-slick road. There were no lights on in any of the houses on the block and no mundanes walking the footpaths.

Thanks to a Farsight rune he had applied before he left the Institute and made his way here, Jace could faintly see the shifting figure of Simon huddled up in one of the trees, overlooking a house that Jace could only assume belonged to Simon’s mother.

It didn’t take a genius to figure out what Simon was doing here so late at night- tonight would be the night when his family would be celebrating Elaine Lewis’s birthday, once she had gotten home from work and Simon had come home from school, the family would gather around the kitchen dining table and sing happy birthday and cut cake and hand her the gifts.

Honestly, Jace felt sorry for the poor guy. One day he had a loving family who cared for him and trusted him and the next his mother was calling him a monster and disowning him, kicking him out of his own home.

Undoubtedly, Simon had heard him approach and heard his ragged breathing as he battled through the cold winds, and Jace wondered if Simon was waiting for the Shadowhunter to make the first move. “Oi,” He called quietly, and with the help of his rune, he watched Simon turn his face downwards towards Jace. “Come down here a minute.”

Nimbly, Simon climbed back down through the tree branches and landed gracefully on the ground, hands in his jacket pockets despite not feeling the cold. “What’s up?” He asked, swinging his hips back and forth. “I suppose you wouldn’t have tracked me down all the way here if there wasn’t something important that you wanted to talk to me about.”

“Actually, there’s nothing important.” Jace shrugged at Simon’s raised eyebrow. “Do I need an excuse to hang out with my friend?”

“At…” Simon checked his watch and whistled between his teeth. “2:40 in the morning? Also, isn’t friends a bit of an overstatement from you? You don’t even like me.”

“Yeah, well, I guess I just didn’t want you to be alone.” Jace turned his attention back to the house. “Especially not tonight.”

“Awh,” Simon teased turning his back to lean against the tree he had just descended from. “Someone having feelings for me?”

Smirking, Jace looked momentarily over a Simon, whose eyes were fixed on a particular window “Don’t count on it.” He followed Simon’s gaze. “Is that your old room?”

Sighing through his nose, Simon nodded, and it was still odd to Jace for a vampire to breathe at all. “Yeah. Who knows what mum’s done to it now that I’m gone. Probably turned it into a gym like parents do when their kids leave for college.” He laughed, but there was no humour.

“Do you miss it?”

“All the time.”

Thinking, Jace kicked some gravel and watched the puff of dust he disturbed float into the night sky before it dispersed through the air. “We could always just sneak in and give it a look. Everyone’s asleep. Who’s going to notice a Shadowhunter and a vampire?”

"You know I can't actually go in there, right?" At Jace's confused look, Simon shrugged and continued. "Mum thinks I'm a monster wearing her sons face, so she's put crosses and religious symbols all over the door handles and window ledges so I can't get in, and the inside is like a spiritual war zone. Rebecca says that she's started cleaning the windows and floors with holy water."  
  
Jace blinked. "That... sucks." He winced at how dry and insincere his voice sounded despite that not being his intention, but Simon didn't seem bothered, his eyes still fixed longingly on his old home. "Well, in that case, I _really_ have a reason to not leave you alone tonight."  
  
It never ceased baffled Jace that Simon, as a vampire, still wore a jacket and weather-appropriate clothes despite not feeling cold. As he watched, Simon zipped his jacket up all the way to his neck, as if sensing Jace's discomfort at the weather, and effectively hid his geeky red Star Wars shirt from sight, which Jace was mildly thankful for but resisted the urge to speak his thoughts out loud. "Yeah," Simon said once he had shoved his hands back into his pockets. "That's fair. I probably wouldn't either."  
  
In an attempt at companionable friendship, Jace slung his arm around Simon's much higher shoulders. "What do you say we go get some drinks instead?"  
  
"You know I can't get drunk," Simon said, distracted, and his voice unconvinced. "And don't you have better places to be? More important people to hang out with, like Alec or Clary or Isabelle? Why would you waste your time trying to make me feel better?"  
  
That stopped Jace at a stagnant pause, and he stood there blinking and reeling at the doubt in his words and the apprehension in his eyes as he looked over at Jace with narrowed, suspicious eyes. "We don't always get along or see eye to eye, but I don't want to force holy water down your throat or stake you through the heart." Jace slowly removed his arm from around Simon's shoulders, letting it drop heavily to his side. "We're still friends, and I wouldn't want Izzy or Alec to go through something like this alone, and I wouldn't want you to either. So, I repeat- do you want to go out for a few beers or not?"   
  
Quietly, Simon seemed to muse this over, running it over in his tongue like hard candy and looking up into the sky as if for guidance. "Alright. Sure. Let's go."  
  
After a few drinks at the dingy and secluded Alto Bar, Simon ended up carrying Jace back home to the Institute, and after letting Clary and Izzy take pictures, Alec to tease him and Magnus laughing very loudly in his face, Simon took him up to his room and dumped him heavily and from a height onto the bed.

When Jace woke up groggy and disoriented the next morning, Clary had politely informed him that Simon was no longer in the Institute, having stayed up late gazing at the stars before wishing them farewell and going for a walk sometime during the early hours of dawn. Instead of searching for Alec and Isabelle who he knew would be sparring in the training room and enduring another morning filled with Isabelle’s terrible cooking, Jace kissed Clary gently and left the Institute, trusting her to pass on the wordless message.

Honestly, Jace couldn’t figure out for the life of him why he suddenly cared so much about Simon. Maybe it was the circumstances in which he was dragged into his new lifestyle. Maybe he feels guilty for letting a mundane get involved with any sort of Shadowhunter business. Maybe Simon just has the look of someone in perpetual confusion. Or maybe, and this one pains Jace to admit but he knows it’s the most likely, maybe Simon is just growing on him and Jace is finally accepting the vampire as his friend.

_Vampire_. Jace found it funny- the term hardly applied to Simon any more than mundane did. Simon could prance about in the sunlight. He could hold holly symbols- sure, they hurt, but he could do it. He no longer choked on the word “God.” He can control his urges around freely running blood and defenceless people. And sure, maybe in the past, there were times when Simon lost control and couldn’t help himself, but after everything he’s done for them without question, Jace forgave him almost immediately.

It didn’t take too long for Jace to find Simon- he was in the park that Jace knew he visited to clear his thoughts. He was on a hill, one off in the distance, leaning back on his hands. Beside him, a woman that Jace could only assume was Rebecca sat beside him, her legs crossed and her eyes on the gaggle of children playing in the playground. Simon said something and Rebecca snorted, swatting him on the arm.

Curious, Jace applied a new Soundlessness rune and scurried up towards them, hiding behind the thick trunk of a nearby tree before Simon could see him. Jace was close enough now to hear their conversation, and despite not wanting to interfere or involve himself in Simon’s business, Jace couldn’t help but wonder what Simon’s relationship was like with his sister (was is anything like the relationship between Jace, Alec and Isabelle?) and how Simon behaved and acted towards people- mundanes- that had nothing to do with the strange world he had been thrown headfirst into.

“So,” Rebecca said, slapping Simon on the knee. “How’s the relationship with Isabelle going?”

“Isabelle?” Simon laughed, pushing the hand that Becca had left on his knee off with a flick of his wrist and a roll of his eyes. Rebecca seemed not to mind and put her hands back in her lap. “She’s great- a total badass and totally terrifying. Why?”

Sighing, Rebecca shimmied around in the dirt, getting grass stains all over the seat of her jeans, to turn towards her younger brother and give him a look that Jace could only interoperate as an incredulous glare- one he received from Alec on a daily basis. “You really don’t see it?”

Snorting, Simon turned with a raised eyebrow to his sister. “See what?”

“You’re so hung up with Clary and this thing with Maia that you don’t see anything else.” Rebecca waved her hand vaguely. “I don’t know this Isabelle, but from the way you talk about her, Simon, it sounds like you really love her. And like she really loves you too.”

“Nah, Isabelle is just Isabelle.” Simon defended, waving his sister off. “She’s brilliant and amazing and suave and- don’t tell her brothers I said this- but really attractive.” He sat up straighter and plucked a rock from the dirt, twirling it around between his fingers. “Even if she did feel something for me, why in the world would she ever choose me over anyone else?”

A heartbroken look crossed Rebecca’s face and she reached a hand out to console her brother and denounce his darkest thoughts, but Simon laughed and shook his head, tossing the rock into the distance, where it tumbled down the hill and out of sight. “Anyway, I’m alright. I mean, can you blame her? Who would date a vampire, am I right? I’ve memorised all the Star Wars movies word for word by now, anyway.”

“Yeah, ok.” Rebecca looked like she desperately wanted to change the topic and Jace wished she would too as he watched sadness skate across Simon’s face. “But you have friends at this new place you’re staying at, right? People who are helping you and watching your back?”

Frowning, Simon seemed to think on the topic and Jace couldn’t believe how hard he had to consider. “I mean, sure, there’s Clary and Luke and Isabelle. Magnus, maybe, because we’re both Downworlders but I think he gets sick of me easily. Alec and Jace don’t like me at all, though Jace tried to be friendly the other night and I ended up having to carry his drunk ass to bed. I don’t think… there’s anyone else?”

“So you’ve only made one real friend?” Rebecca raised her hand.

“I mean; I suppose so? What else do you expect me to do?” Simon sighed and ran a hand down his face. “Nobody likes vampires and because they knew me before, nobody at the Institute trusts me.”

“What about Maia and Jordan?”

“I thought me were talking about friends at the Institute?”

“We were until I realised that you have no friends at the Institute.”

Simon rolled his eyes and took a swat at his sister, which she easily evaded. “Rude. I’ve got Eric and Kirk and Matt. They count. Besides,” Simon pushed his knees to his chest and wrapped his arms tightly around them as he watched a small white dog chase a bright-green tennis ball. “The Institute doesn’t want me around anyway. I’m too different- they don’t like vampires. Really, they put up with werewolves because of Luke and warlocks because of Magnus but they have no reason to like vamps.”

Sighing, Rebecca scooted over and laid her head on Simons shoulder, who seemed to have no trouble bearing the added weight. “I don’t know why you stay there if you’re treated so badly. You’re too nice a guy, you don’t deserve it.”

Absently, Simon plucked a blade of grass from the ground. “Yeah well, there are some people who seem to think that I _do_ deserve it.” Sighing, Simon dropped the broken piece of grass to disappear and blend in with the rest of the area around them. “Hell, sometimes _I_ think that I deserve it, with how often I mess everything up.”

“Oh Simon, that’s not true at all,” Rebecca looped her arm around her brothers and tilted her head up slightly to look into his face. “We may not be… parabatai… like Jace and Alec, but we’re close, yeah? You know you can always come to me and tell me anything. I’ll always be here for you, even when you are an annoying pain in my ass.”

“Well, I’m glad I’ve got you looking out for me.” Simon smiled down at his sisters face, illuminated in the sunlight, and placed a kiss to her forehead. “It felt like I was all alone for a while there. I didn’t even have Clary.” He threaded his fingers through Rebecca’s hair and she leant into the touch as if she missed it. For all Jace knew, she probably had. “But I’m glad I’ve always got you in my corner.”

“Always.”

Jace hated to break up the touching moment between a brother and a sister, one he should be used to by now having lived with Alec and Isabelle for the majority of his life, but somehow the relationship between the Lewis’ was much different than the relationship between the Lightwoods. Softer, less outright affection, more in-depth conversations about heartache, more broken pieces that needed to find their place, more time lost between them. Stepping out from the tree, Jace cleared his throat and kept his eyes on the floor. “Sorry to interrupt but I was meaning to talk with Simon if you wouldn’t mind.”

Looking up, Simon’s face didn’t convey the anger Jace was expecting, only confusion. Rebecca, on the other hand, narrowed her eyes at Jace and kissed her brother on the cheek before she grabbed her bag and stood up. “I should probably get going anyway- I have to meet mum at the train station.” Her lingering touch on Simon’s shoulder told Jace how much the siblings meant to each other. She stopped her stride in front of Jace and looked him over with a frown. “ _You’re_ Jace.”

“I believe I am. I also believe we haven’t exactly met before, so do you mind telling me how you know that?” Jace pretended not to hear their previous conversation and instead tilted his head to the side.

“Doesn’t matter.” Rebecca waved him off before tightening her grip on the shoulder strap of her bag. “What does matter is my brother. You be nice to him; you hear? He doesn’t deserve to be picked on by pretty boys with tattoos and an attitude, especially not when you got him into this mess in the first place.” Satisfied, she nodded. “Nice to meet you.”

As she walked away, Rebecca called out loudly over her shoulder: “Play nice you two!”

Simon was sniggering behind his hand when Jace sat down on the grass beside him. “Is your sister usually that aggressive? For her size, she’s rather threatening, even for a mundane.”

“She’s usually much more mild-mannered.” Simon shrugged but he didn’t seem like he meant it. “I guess you’ve finally met your match- someone who didn’t fall in love with you immediately.”

“Oh no, she’s delightful,” Jace argued, changing the position of his legs and trying to get comfortable on the rough and rocky terrain. “I might invite her back to the Institute, have her meet the family. Tell me, is she a flower or perfume kind of woman? For the ‘congratulations, you’re one of us’ gift?”

“Get lost,” Simon said without heat, knowing Jace was joking. He quickly looked his friend over. “You’re not glamored so I’m assuming this couldn’t wait until I got back to the Institute. How was your morning?”

Scoffing, Jace scrubbed dirt off his pants using the heel of his hand, despite knowing it wouldn’t do any good. “I woke up with a headache and ended up here to meet another headache of mine.” Simon looked mildly offended. “But it wasn’t all bad- I got to miss out on Isabelle’s cooking.”

Humming, Simon stared off into the sunrise. All the kids that were at the park when Jace arrived had long since left and the only evidence that there was anyone there at all was the gently swaying of the swings in the breeze. Jace gave him his time. “How much of that did you hear?” Simon asked suddenly, glancing at Jace.

“Not much- only the tail end.” Jace lied and hoped Simon couldn’t tell. “Do you really think you’re a screw-up?”

“Don’t you?”

Huffing, Jace ran a hand roughly down his face.  “I mean, yeah, but you’re not all bad.” He winced- the words sounded dishonest to his own ears and Simon frowned at him. “Sure, you’re not my favourite person in the world, but I wouldn’t say you’re a screw-up.”

“Pretty close though, right?”

Silently, Jace turned fully to look at Simon who was sending him a cheeky grin that Jace could tell masked a mass amount of pain in his eyes. “You’re no more of a screw up than Alec, or Clary, or Izzy or hell, even me, and you know how amazing I am.” He bumped Simon with his shoulder. “You know, even though I say it all the time, I don’t just put up with you because you’re Clary’s best friend.”

“Oh?” Simon tilted his head. “And what’s the reason?”

“You… intrigue me.” Jace appraised Simon with new eyes as he shone under the sunlight. “Not just because you’re a Daylighter or the Mark of Cain, but it’s something else. Something I can’t explain. And I’m nothing if not curious- I want to figure you out.

Laughing, Simon reached out to gently whack Jace on the shoulder. “Sure thing Sherlock Holmes”

“Simon, you do know that, even though we don’t get along at all, I’d still do anything to protect you, right?” Jace said out of the blue and watched the confusion overtake Simon’s face.

“Why would you do that?”

“Because you’re a good friend. A good person. A good vampire.”

“Oh, well,” Jace couldn’t ignore the faint mist that shone in his eyes. He quickly wiped them away. “That’s a nice statement. I wouldn’t have expected that from you.”

Looking him up and down, Jace placed a comforting hand on Simon’s shoulder and grinned. “There’s a first for everything. You know I wouldn’t give you up for anything, right? And it’s not just because you’re a ‘friend of a friend’.”

“Thanks, Jace,” Simon said and the quietness of his voice told Jace everything he needed to know about how sincere the vampire was. “That actually means a lot to me. I don’t actually have that many friends but to know I have you at least in my corner is just a great thing for me.”

Chuckling, Jace bumped Simon with his shoulder, the closet they had ever gotten to a hug, save from the mutual carrying. “It’s not just me. Alec likes you too, even though you talk too much and can be annoying, but he’s gruff and grumpy all the time because he needs people to take him seriously. Besides, it can’t be easy looking after the lot of us on a daily basis.”

Simon rubbed his eyes from the glare of the sun off the metal of the playground “That’s true.”

“And if you ever need to talk, you know I’m always here.” Jace turned to look at Simon and found that Simon’s eyes were already on him, watering slightly and with his head tilted in consideration. “About anything. I’m just a phone call away. If Clary and Izzy or anyone else aren’t enough- I’m always ready to listen.”

“You’d do that for me?” It hurt Jace to hear Simon so reluctant to believe him, but Jace knows that he brought it on himself.

Jace reached over and took Simon’s hand and squeezed it tightly within his own. “What are friends for?”

Sighing, Simon gently squeezed back, and Jace was once again awed at how much power Simon has, yet he was being soft and kind to Jace in such a simple gesture that some vampires forget their new strength and crush bones in handshakes. Not Simon though- he can hardly be called a vampire at all. “Thanks Jace.”

“Anytime.” And Jace knew that he meant it.


End file.
